The invention described and claimed herein is generally related to protective cases for firearms. More particularly, this invention is related to protective carrying cases for rifles.
The present invention is generally applicable to rifles, shotguns and other firearms that may be carried by means of a shoulder sling. However, the primary use of the invention is to protect hunting rifles while being carried in the field. Accordingly, as a matter of convenience in the following specification, the invention will be described primarily with reference to rifles.
The present invention is directed to the problem of adequately protecting a hunting rifle from foul weather while the rifle is being carried in the field, while at the same time allowing the rifle to be carried in a comfortable manner and at the same time maintaining the rifle in a state of readiness that is sufficient to allow it to be quickly deployed and fired when game is sighted. It will be recognized that it is important to protect the metal parts of a hunting rifle from the effects of moisture, particularly on extended hunts when regular maintenance may not be feasible.
There have been commercially available various carrying cases for rifles and shotguns. Most such cases, however, are designed for storage of the firearm, or for transportation of the firearm to and from the field or range, but have not been designed for the purpose of carrying the firearm in the field while hunting. As a result, such cases are not generally suitable for use in the field. Some such cases are of rigid construction, rendering them bulky and altogether unsuitable for use in the field. Many commercially available cases are of a soft construction, and are somewhat better suited for carrying the rifle, but such cases typically do not allow the rifle to be carried by a shoulder sling while the rifle is in the case, and further do not allow the rifle to be sighted and fired without first having to remove the rifle from the case. Additionally, soft cases are simply two bulky and cumbersome for use in the field, particularly while traveling on foot.
Furthermore, most commercially available soft rifle cases include zippers that extend all or part of the length of the case. In this regard, it well known that zippers are designed to bear only a limited amount of stress in a direction transverse to the plane of the fabric to which they are attached. Accordingly, it is recognized that it is undesirable for a zipper to be located on the underside of a gun case, where the zipper would bear the full weight of the rifle directly. Consequently most soft gun cases are designed so that the zipper faces upwardly while the rifle is being transported. Typically in this regard there is a handle attached to the case on the same side as the zipper, so that the zipper faces upwardly during carrying of the case and rifle by the handle of the case, thereby ensuring that the rifle cannot damage the zipper and possibly be dropped from the case due to a failure of the zipper. Although such a design is structurally sound for the limited purpose of transporting the rifle to and from the field, it suffers from the disadvantage that the upwardly facing zipper allows rain to enter the gun case through the upwardly facing zipper during normal carrying of the rifle. In this regard, it is well known that it is difficult, if not impossible, to provide a zipper that is impermeable to water. As a result, this design is unsuitable for any kind of extended use during foul weather. Moreover, this design requires that the rifle and case be carried by the case handle, rather than by the more efficient and comfortable shoulder sling, which is normally attached to the rifle and therefore enclosed within the case along with the rifle. During any but the briefest of hunts this consequence of the case design ordinarily represents an unacceptable inconvenience.
In perhaps the majority of instances, no gun case at all is used by hunters in the field. Nevertheless, there has been a need for a means of protecting high quality hunting rifles while being carried in the field. More particularly, there has been a need for a carrying case that can be conveniently used in the field to protect a high quality rifle, particularly when foul weather is expected, or during extended hunts. During extended hunts lasting several days, even small amounts of water can cause damage, particularly if the water gains access to the internal mechanisms of the rifle.
Accordingly, it is an object and purpose of the present invention to provide a carrying case for a rifle or other firearm, which is substantially impermeable to water, and which is durable, compact and light weight.
It is also an object and purpose of the present invention to provide a carrying case for use in the field, which permits the rifle, to be carried by a conventional shoulder sling attached to the rifle.
It is another object and purpose of the present invention to provide a carrying case for a rifle, which allows the rifle to be quickly aimed and fired without being detached from the carrying case.
It is yet another object and purpose of the present invention to provide a carrying case for a rifle which does not include a zipper that faces upwardly during normal carrying of the case and the rifle.